German Mercedes manager arrested in Alabama under new illegal immigration law

Alabama's strict immigration laws have helped land a Mercedes-Benz executive in jail. The Associated Press reports that an unnamed Mercedes executive was arrested after being pulled over for a routine traffic stop.

The arrest came after the 46-year-old exec was unable to produce any identification other than his German ID card. The executive was pulled over because his rental car reportedly did not have any tags, but he was later released after an associate was able to present his passport for inspection. Mercedes-Benz spokesperson Felyicia Jerald called the incident "unfortunate," and added that the incident was resolved once a colleague was able to produce a driver's license.

When Alabama Governor Robert Bentley heard of the executive's arrest, he reportedly contacted State Homeland Security Director Spencer Collier to get details. We're guessing that doesn't happen when most other immigration arrests in Alabama, but Mercedes-Benz has a substantial footprint in the state. Mercedes has built vehicles in Tuscaloosa since 1993, and the facility currently produces the ML, R-Class and GL.

Reported comments and users are reviewed by Autoblog staff 24 hours a day, seven days a week to determine whether they violate Community Guideline. Accounts are penalized for Community Guidelines violations and serious or repeated violations can lead to account termination.

"What you should really be concerned about is why our German guests pay a small fraction of taxes to our financially strapped State compared to what I, a homegrown Alabamian, pay for the right to open my door to the public."
Foreign assignees in the United States, as with American assignees in countries all over the world, are bound by expatriate tax programmes which are governed and approved by tax jurisdictions in countries which are party to tax treaties with other countries. The United States has tax treaties with many countries around the globe.
As a result, an assignee is usually only bound to retain a tax liability equal to that which he would pay on his ordinary income in his/her home country, regardless of what they earn in their host country. The effective additional tax on additional earnings in their host country are paid by the company, and treated as a taxable benefit in kind which itself is paid by the company.
Alabama would be paid the tax, but by the company as opposed to the individual. His US federal liability would be negated by the German federal, state and (if applicable) church tax payable, and any additional US federal liability paid by the company.
Bear in mind also that Alabama receives a significant amount of property and corporate taxes from Mercedes itself.
I suspect much of this story is media sensationalism, because it doesn't detail the nature of the German ID. You are not legally required to carry a passport as a visitor to the US, although it's advisable to. And a foreign driving licence is acceptable for up to one year.

That sword cuts both ways...US citizens often pay little or no taxes when in other countries for more than 18 months. Do you think US servicemen in Iraq pay Iraqi taxes (dunno if Iraq even has an income tax, probably against the Koran like interest).

He had his German ID card. Imagine if the US had a national ID card? Ooops you might have to present it for employment or getting a driver's license then illegals would have a harder time getting work. I do find it interesting that he knew enough to have his German ID card. Possibly at home he would be in serious trouble for not having. Driving a car with out tags...I hope he was not surprised he got pulled over.

The Mercedes-Benz plant is actually just outside of Vance, not Tuscaloosa. It's on the south side of I-20. I drove past the place this past summer - it is *huge*. If the car didn't have any tags on it at all (not even a temporary tag), I can see why the cops would pull him over.

The city limits of Tuscaloosa were extended for tax revenue purposes to include the plant before construction started. You enter Vance a few hundred yards from the plant. I live in Vance and can actually see the lights of the plant from my house.

So, if you get pulled over for a violation that would result in a ticket, but don't have any way to show who or where to send that ticket to, you get out of it in other states? It seems to me that if you can't prove who you are AND you're in violation of the law, you should be taken into custody in any state. Filing this under immigration is unnecessary. The article says that before the immigration law took effect, someone who could not produce a license would not be arrested. That is still true in Alabama, to my knowledge: if you simply don't have an ID with you, you're fine, and will not be arrested (but nobody is stopped for an ID check anyway, so it doesn't matter). IF however, as in this situation, you've committed some other offense AND you don't have a license with you, you will be arrested. This seems like a non-issue, whether it was the guy's fault or not.

IIRC, the Alabama law means, if a cop thinks you're an immigrant, and you don't have a license or some other form of ID with you, EVEN IF YOU'RE NOT DRIVING, you can be arrested.
Even if you've always been a US citizen.

[blocked]

To recap - the man didn't have the correct immigration documents (eg passport), his car had no tags, therefore he was arrested.
The law was followed and he subsequently produced the correct documents (which was his fault that he did not originally have) and he was released.
This is a non-story despite the media attempting to bait people into making it one.

That's what I was trying to figure out. Even reading the AB article over again I'm failing to see the problem. Neither he nor his car had proper documentation. Pretty sure this might happen in places outside Alabama too...

in most states, he wouldn't need to produce ID of proof he is legal............. Isn't it basically only AZ and AL that give police officers the right to rquest this info at their discretion?
AFAIK, other 48 states don't give officers such authority for a simple traffic stop. He could however be arrested or just fined for
1) driving without a proper driving license
2) driving without license plates
3) driving an unregistered vehicle (was the car actually unregistered or simply did not have physical plates bolted on?)
all in all, it is clear the primary intent of the law in AL is to keep in check the population of Mexican illegals but I find it kind of funny that it netted a European foreigner.......Good job by the cop for doing his job though

if you were even the slightest bit familiar with the laws of many states in the south, you'd be aware that many DO NOT have temporary plates. at best, they will have a cardboard tag that reads, "tag applied for", with NO registration numbers on it. that "tag applied for" is not even required.
it IS a big deal, because if it wasn't, the governor would not be involved.
these idiots in the Alabama legislature are now reaping what they've sown.

By law you must have a proper form of identification on you in this country, a law that is even stricter in Alabama. Nothing that should have not happened...happened. A well done Officer for doing your job by the book.

Are you talking about the U.S.? Because it's actually the law that you're not at all required to carry ID so you have it entirely backwards but the law only applies to citizens so foreigners are still required to carry ID.

Really? What law requires I carry ID? While driving, yes in the form of proof that I am alloed to drive. But there is no law in genral requiring ID. At least not where I live and there is none at the federal level.
Hey Alabama, how's those crops doing. Oh yeah. Rotting in the fields. So much for protecting those jobs for 'muricans.

That is utterly stupid and ignorant. How many 12-15 year olds do you know with 'proper identification?'
If your argument is that you must have proper identification when driving, that's another matter.

A huge win for Alabama! Just goes to show you how well a good law will work, when applied. And as far as that German exec goes...maybe he's now learned a very important lesson..as a foreign visitor in this country, he should carry his ID papers with him at all times...people who can prove that they have a right to be in this country are always welcome... those that can't (illegals) or those people arrogant enough to test the law...like that Mercedes exec...they need to be sent home asap!

Yeah I'm sure Alabama will really appreciate it when Mercedes leaves town for a more friendly state. They've already trashed their farm industry with their immigration policy so I guess the next step is to arrest Hyundai and Mercedes execs to destroy the car industry?

I did exactly that last friday. The entire time I was thinking to myself, "Opps, I'd better drive real careful because I'll been in a heap of trouble if I get pulled over without my license..." And I was born here. Why should anyone else be any different?

My wife is a green card holder and every paper we have ever gotten says " you must have your resident alien card with you at all times".
So yes, it's unfortunate he didn't have his passport with him, but it is the law.
Thing that sucks is how often do we go on vacation in Mexico and leave our passport in the room instead of on the beach or in town with us?
I know when people are working they should be carrying, but it's just tough. We have to give up some freedoms for security. It's a fine line and sucks the we live in this world but we gotta go with it.